By Gift Mashoko
Government through the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development has adopted the Public Private Partnership (PPP) model for infrastructural development at the tertiary institutions.
Speaking during a question and answer session in the Senate yesterday, Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development Professor Amon Murwira highlighted that Government, through the Ministry, is working on introducing solar power around the National University Science and Technology (NUST) with the help of their investors.
“The Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education Science and Technology Development together with investors are already putting up solar street lighting around NUST in Bulawayo. In addition under the PPP, the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education, Science at Technology, is ready to install a solar plant at the same institution. It will initially supply NUST with 0.25MW/hour, raising that to 5,0MW/hour as soon as ZERA permits us to sell the power to ZETDC,” he said.
Honourable Murwira said that he was hoping the power that would be sold to ZETDC would be added onto the National power grid.
Minister Murwira highlighted other areas which the Government is working on through the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology development.
“We have plans, however, of establishing a teachers college cum polytechnic like the Joshua Nqabuko Nkomo model at Ntabazinduna Vocational Training Centre in 2019. First it will be a satellite college of the United College of Education (UCE) in Bulawayo.
“We have already started the formal process at Ntabazinduna Teachers College. We want it to be operational by August, but it will be operating initially under UCE,” he said.
The Ministry is planning to take the initiative to the various institutions of higher learning so as to encourage the use of green energy.
Following the budget announcement, the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development is living up to Government’s key initiatives some of which include establishment of innovation hubs and spin off industries, incubation of science and technology based industries and promotion of research and development for modernisation and industrialisation.
